We’re all being asked to stay at home whenever possible. But what if you didn’t have a home?
Lambeth and Southwark are two of the local areas which are most affected by COVID-19. They’re also affected more than most by homelessness. The Robes Project has been giving rough sleepers a helping hand out of homelessness in Lambeth and Southwark for many years. We’ve been able to do this thanks to the generosity of dozens of churches which host our winter night shelters; thanks to more than 1,000 volunteers who keep our shelters and Wednesday Club running; and thanks to our small team of dedicated advice workers who help rough sleepers into decent housing all year. When the lockdown was announced in March, we had to close our shelters and Wednesday Club early, and our volunteers were no longer able to be near our guests. The Government called for all rough sleepers to be given accommodation within 48 hours – and local councils and hotels responded quickly. Of the 29 guests who were in our shelters, 17 are now living in a hotel, 11 are living in temporary accommodation thanks to Southwark Council, and another has found a place in a YMCA.
Right now, homeless people need our support
These 29 guests are in our care. Our advice workers need to: check with them regularly on their health and wellbeing; help them access benefits at a time when several have lost work in hospitality and catering; and ultimately help them into employment and permanent accommodation.
As well as this, the guests who are in temporary and YMCA accommodation rely on us for basic material needs including food vouchers, laundry services and phone top-ups. This is new territory for Robes, as we would not usually be providing this kind of help after our shelters close in early April until November.
You can make a difference
Robes has always relied on our amazing local community. Although our shelters and social club are closed, there are ways you can help. You can donate here to help us keep all of our work going – from providing emergency support to our guests, to continuing their longer-term journey out of homelessness. You can run online fundraising events for us, to have fun while helping us raise even more. If you’re interested, please get in touch with our Charity Manager Nick at robes.admin@robes.org.uk
Finally, you can spread the word about our work on social media – to encourage friends and family to support us, and make sure homeless people aren’t forgotten at this time. We have a Facebook page here and Twitter here: we’d love to hear from you, and hear your support for Robes’ work.